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When Carlos Santana made his MLB debut way back in 2010, he was a hit-first catcher. Yes, he was a catcher, but he was in the big leagues because he could hit. Over the course of the next four seasons, he got more and more playing time at first base in Cleveland.
Santana was very reliable with the bat early in his career, nearly guaranteed to hit 19 or more home runs and drive in a bunch of runs. He also walked over 90 times most seasons. But, he was a bat-first first baseman which works when you are providing as much offense as he typically did.
On Sunday night, after the conclusion of his 15th season in the big leagues, and at 38 years old, Santana won his first Gold Glove Award. And he was the clear choice at the position. While the overall Twins defense was very poor at many positions throughout the season, Santana really stood out for his great defense.
It was the first Gold Glove won by a Twins player since Byron Buxton and Brian Dozier were recipients in 2017.
However, he has continued to work on his defense, and was rewarded for those efforts with the Gold Glove. Ryan Mountcastle of the Orioles and Nathaniel Lowe of the Rangers were the other two finalists for the award.
No one looks simply at Fielding Percentage, but Santana had just four errors and a .996 fielding percentage. Mountcastle was at .997, and Low was at .995. No AL first baseman played more than the 1,250 innings that Santana played.
Santana accumulated 14 Outs Above Average (OOA). In the AL, Lowe was second with 7 OAA. Mountcastle had just 2 OAA.
Do you prefer Defensive Runs Saved? Santana and Mountcastle tied for the AL lead at 7 DRS. Another FanGraphs defensive stat, "Range," finds Carlos Santana tops among all MLB first baseman. His "11" is one better than Arizona's Christian Walker. Number 3 on that list are Bryce Harper and Nathaniel Lowe at just "5."
Gone are the days when offensive numbers played a factor in Gold Glove voting. Over about the past decade, as defensive metrics have vastly improved, these are truly defensive awards. Gone are the days - like 1999 - when Rafael Palmeiro won his third straight AL Gold Glove at first base despite playing just 28 games at the position. That year, Palmeiro hit .324/.420/.630 (1.050) with 30 doubles, 47 RBI, and 148 RBI. Of course, Twins fans remember Doug Mientkiewicz playing the season at first base, with a .997 fielding percentage, a very high Range Factor, and Web Gems galore. Of course, he hit just .229/.324/.330 (.655) with 21 doubles and two home runs.
FYI - Mientkiewicz was the last Twins first baseman to win a Gold Glove. He earned it in 2001. Vic Power of the Twins was the AL Gold Glove winning first baseman in 1962 and 1963.
It is a great thing that the Gold Gloves are now handed out based on defensive abilities!
Over the past four seasons, Carlos Santana has been a bit of a nomad. He has spent time with the Royals, the Mariners, the Pirates, and the Brewers before joining the Twins on a one-year deal before the 2024 season. As of last week, at the conclusion of the World Series, Santana again became a free agent.
With last week's abrupt retirement by Alex Kirilloff due to a back injury, the Twins have an early-offseason hole at first base. Could that increase the likelihood of Santana returning to the Twins? Should it? We shall see.
Join us in congratulation Carlos Santana on his well-deserved Gold Glove!
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- nclahammer, DannySD and Heiny
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